Amazon Riverboat Adventure, Peru

Our Amazon Riverboat adventure began with a flight over the Andes from Lima to Iquitos in the Amazon Basin. From Iquitos we travelled to Nauta where the Amatista Riverboat was moored. For the next few days we travelled along the Amazon and its tributaries exploring the Pacaya Samiria National Reserve. We went out in a motorised skiff day and night exploring the small rivers and creeks to see the wildlife and plants or taking a trek through the rainforest. The scenery was amazing, a world of mirror reflections and incredible sunsets. Along the way we passed many of the indigenous Cocama people living along the edges of the rivers. The Cocama people have lived in the Amazon Basin in Peru for hundreds of years. We visited a local village and learned how the Cocama cope living in the flooded forest environment. They build their houses on stilts and thatch the roofs with palm leaves from the forest. They are self sufficient growing crops and keeping livestock. They cut trees from the forest to make canoes and fish forms the major part of their diet. We had a Shaman ceremony. Some Cocama are born to be a shaman and the knowledge of the shaman is passed down through the family from other shamans. They practice Animism and seek natural cures from the surrounding jungle. We visited the Amazonian towns of Nauta and Iquitos. The Manatee Rescue Centre in Iquitos was a good opportunity to see manatees and other Amazonian animals.

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